"Number Crunch"

It is undoubtedly one of the best shows on television right now. Better than all the previous action type series except perhaps the original Nikita. Not the generic rip off today. However, there are a lot of flaws. which other investigative shows lack.

EPISODE 1

First of all, Reese would never have stuck around for the police to catch him. And secondly, he never would have taken the water for Carter to get his prints. Flash forward to...

EPISODE 10

I find it difficult to believe that Carter put Reese in her statement because she knew that she'd get a lot of grief for it. And maybe she might have had a little gratitude in the aftermath of the incident. Yes, she would have still wanted to arrest him for his vigilante activities but in the aftermath of him saving her life and if not to simply make her life miserable she might have left it out or not. She is honest to a fault.

Secondly, Fosco would have warned Reese immediately that there were suits looking into the incident; suits that looked exactly like him. Thus, Finch and Reese would have known immediately that they'd been found. This is one of the first and foremost major flaws in this episode.

And I cannot understand why Finch wasn't monitoring Carter more carefully. They had just saved her and needed to know how much she knew and how much she would put in her report.

Thus they could have been warned by Fosco, the camera in the office and by monitoring Carter's cell phone. Sorry, it does not add up. And they're surveillance experts.

And Reese would NEVER have called Carter and given her his location while he was still there. He told her he knew she would still arrest him if she had they chance and naturally she would come with a team as in the second episode to arrest him. He's not an idiot. He knows her character flaw is honestly. So he would have been long gone if he actually gave her the location. However, I do believe that he would have called her to see how she was doing and if she was okay.

Carter being Carter would have seen through the CIA BS. She, like us, will know that some of it is real and some isn't. I don't think that she would have given him up to them knowing that they admitted he was one of their hitmen. She would have wanted to arrest him on her terms and not theirs. And then they admitted to assassinations so I cant see that boding too well with her.

Another thing I could never understand was how a billionaire like Finch did not have a staff to do the minor chores like picking up Reese etc, basic tracking of POI etc. Every crime boss has a people in every area yet this billionaire doesn't?

Those CIA were the most un-CIA folks I ever met. The police track cellphones and monitors people and they didn't? The obvious thing to do was monitor her cell phone and thus they might have been able to find Reese but then again his phone might have been untraceable thanks to the tech-savvy Finch. Eventually, they could have found the signal. They would have also monitored her partner's cellphone, Fosco, in the event that he knew anything.

Why did the sniper not aim for Reese's head if he wanted to kill him. Its either you wanted to kill him, in the head, or not, another body part. Reese would know that Mark would never come alone and would have a shooter nearby. Yes he would have been a sitting duck but I would imagine him working Mark while he tried to reach for cover as he assess the best possible position a sniper would have been in. I imagine Mark trying harder to get back one of their gifted assassins.

Carter actually tried to arrest him after seeing him almost killed in cold-blood, something she is against. She helped the CIA even though they told her that his job was to kill people? They do not give out that information and since they did, she'll be on their hit list. From the moment they tried to kill Reese she should know she was in danger.

PROS OF THE EPISODE

-As usual a lot of action.

-They acting and chemistry between the characters is superb especially our main cast.

-Carter being Carter disobeyed the Captain.

-I think that was the best ending the it could have with Reese badly wounded. My previous comments does not mean that I am opposed to this. I am opposed to the way in which it occurred.

-A lot of emotion in the final shooting scene and Reese thanking Finch for the second chance he was given. That alone makes me give it a 9.7 cause I love the show so much. Just really want them to iron out the flaws.

OPTIONS FOR THE SHOW

The only option left is for they to hide her since she will not be able to do it on her own. She will get a harsh lesson in how the world works. Taraji has stated that she prefers movies and not TV series because she like playing different characters and thus hopes Jonathan give her a lot of undercover time. Now she can evolve and thus have the undercover role she desired. While Reese is down she will realize how many people are dying and there is nothing anyone else can do. She might even have to do it while he's recovering.

One thing's for certain, the writers of the show have no experience in spy shows and need to watch some more or at least think through their stories. Secondly, no way the writer of the dark knight pen the series because they would have been well-thought out and never have these obvious flaws. Despite that, one thing is certain, it is still the best action show on television and the only show I watch.

My rating. Hehe

Well, first off, to everybody else who hung on while other people said that Person of Interest was a boring piece of mediocre entertainment and endured Big Bang(it really is hilarious) and Rules of Engagement(watch it only because of Patrick Warburton's voice) just so that you wouldn't miss POI's beginning every Thursday, cheers! You're so not alone.

Sure, the show has flaws, such as the review below titled "Number Crunch" elaborates, but we still come back each week for more and if we miss an episode, hurry off to the CBS website to get caught up. The double duo, or Fearsome Four team of Reese and Finch-Fusco and Carter is wonderful and the tension spent on wondering if Carter will ever catch Fusco spying on her is great. Finch and Reese are slowly but surely figuring each other out while trying to look as if their not actually trying to figure each other out is amusing, especially with the whole time continuum scene from the latest episode.

Number Crunch started off rather straightforward with the whole drug loaded, wrecked car plot and my parents and I jumped on board rather quickly, but we enjoy figuring stuff out ahead of time just so we can say that we did. The machine spits out four numbers this time though, giving a little diversion to the monotony of just one number. Honestly, New York is a big city; surely more than one person is in danger in the same moment. (One of the aforementioned flaws is that ALL of the people of interest are in New York. I know it's a good point to one of the points that the writer's need to address for a greater realistic feel, but really, I don't care, haha.)

When Reese had to call on Finch to help with the leg work, I found myself enjoying the fact that Finch had to roll up his sleeves for a change, but then the his person of interest (no pun intended) dies and Finch gets a taste of how Reese feels almost all the time. Seeing how concerned Reese was for his... I won't say "friend" because we're not that far along yet... how about "comrade in arms"? Anyway, his concern for Finch's safety is touching, along with a great stare of panic from Jim Caviezel.

Even with the commercial for this episode, I had a hard time believing that Carter would betray Reese, even though the CIA was all "we know everything". He did save her life and so even when he's standing in the parking lot with a sniper trained on him, I'm thinking, "Naw, Carter is gonna save him."

But then all Hades breaks loose, and Reese is finally shown to be mortal. The conversation with Finch was touching and my whole family was teetering on the edge of our seats, pressing the imaginary gas pedal to get Finch to him. His total disregard for his own safety in order to safe his friend, yes they are officially friends now, is a good thing and the way Reese thanks Finch for his "second chance" is very touching. Then Carter FINALLY comes through and lets Reese get away. Better late than never, I guess.

On the whole, give us more CBS!! PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE bring this show back next year and don't leave us hanging for too long!

Exceptional episode...

Well this is getting better and better...Seeing Detective Carter help Reese was the peak of the show, even she realized what a tremendous force he represented...I agree with people who say this is the 2011 best TV Show...

I like how each case gets complex and intense...Four people to save was a hard task to which Reese, Finch and Detective Fosco did a decent job, and now with Carter joining it will make it even more exciting...Another positive element was seeing Finch in the street, trying to save Matt, and feeling the pain of failure...

This is one of the few shows I am looking forward to watch, together with Dexter and Survivor(when Russell is a tribe member) .

Game On!

Now that's what I'm talkin' about!! In what has been a satisfying week of television so far, Person Of Interest packed a significant wallop tonight, thus solidifying it's place as one of the best (if not the best) shows of 2011. 'Number Crunch' was quite possibly the best episode of the series, with 'Witness' and 'Cure Te Ipsum' at second and third place respectively.

Finch's machine provided yet another unexpected problem for Batman and Robin to solve, in the form of not two, not three, but four different social security numbers! This episode didn't exactly catch Finch and Reese at their best as the bodies started dropping faster than Tiger Woods could switch mistresses. The situation was an unaccustomed one for both, especially Finch, who for the first time in this season seemed to be genuinely flustered. It was cool to see Reese actually offer Finch a few honeyed words of consolation. I think this partnership just switched to friendship, folks!

As it turns out, these four people happened to stumble upon an accident involving a cocaine-coated Congressman's son who died on impact with a buttload of cash in his car. So naturally, these four pillars of the community did what any self-respecting dude would do in this economy. They pinched the dough. This would later prove to be fatal for two of the four, because as it so often happens, the money (which is of course illegal) belongs to the Congressman (who is corrupt. No really!) and his partner, who hires a dude and a dudette to get the money back and tie up loose ends. But before things could get any worse, the dude and the dudette got Reesed and the Congressman and his business partner got Finched. End of story? Nope. I missed out the good part!

Carter had a very interesting role to play in this episode. With the CIA now aware that Reese is still alive , I didn't expect her to fold so easily and give up Reese's location. It was a moral dilemma that ultimately solved itself when Carter finally helped Reese escape with Finch. Detective Carter seems to have finally made her decision about Reese, although it almost got him killed tonight.

So now there are loads of questions swimming around in my mind -

- Why does the CIA want Reese dead? The story that Reese killed his handler might be true, but the rest is bull. It's more likely that Snow and the other dude are rogue agents trying to clean up a mess they created.

- Where do Reese and Carter go from here? Friends or Foes? Is Fusco going to lose his status as Reese's police contact?

- The photograph Reese saw at Finch's place. N.I probably stands for N. Ingram, the dude from episode 2 (Ghosts). How did Ingram die? Does Finch's limp have something to do with it?

- Where does Elias fit into all of this?

Speaking of episode 2, I remember a split second scene between Finch and Ingram in 2007, where Finch switches off one of the computers with Reese's ex-girlfriend's photo on the screen. Reese's ex is dead, folks. There may come a point in the series where both Reese and Finch will realize that her death could have been prevented.

Whew! I could go on and on. This show still has a lot of avenues to explore and I will definitely be along for the ride.

Tidbits

- Reese got shot in the gut and the leg. He still managed to return fire and limp away from an NYPD detective and two CIA trained operatives. Badass!

- No episode of Person Of Interest is complete without a Fusco joke. Finch commenting about Fusco's digestive tract was hilarious!

- I borrowed Reese's motorcycle this week. Sorry dudes!

I had no idea this was the mid-season finale. The next episode is in 2012. Crumbs.

Problems With the End of this Episode

1. I don't buy Carter betraying Reese to the CIA, after he saved her life and after she made statements to the effect that she dislikes and distrusts them almost as much as Reese does. I think she would have gone to the parking garage by herself.

2. Where was the short assault rifle Reese had earlier in the garage? Did he just drop it and leave it for some kids to find?

3. A competent sniper with a lit-up, stationary target would have either killed him intstantly with a chest or head shot, or if the intent was to disable, would have gone for a knee or a shin. Where he got hit made no sense. A hit in the lower abdomen may or may not disable, but also may or may not kill. Also, Reese is not likely going to be able to walk down a flight of stairs after getting hit in the abdomen with a high-powered rifle.

4. What happened to the CIA guys after the shooting? They started to give chase, then just disappeared, while Carter, Reese and Finch had their whole scene at the car.

I really like the show, but they need to start paying more attention to details.

A bigger question I have is why are they are going to all this effort and taking all these risks to prevent one violent crime at a time in NYC? That is a drop in the bucket! NYC has over 800 murders a year, so are Reese and Finch going to prevent 2-3 a day? How do they prioritize? And are only NYC residents worth saving? What if a Number comes up in Jersey? Or Philly? Do they just ignore those? I would like to see them go nation-wide and have some bigger purpose, like preventing a lot of people from getting killed or taking down big crime rings. If I had the power of "The Machine" that's what I'd do.

Number Crunch

Great episode! Glad to see a follow up to the previous one...and a set up for more story lines to follow.

As for comments about accuracy and/or realism... Good grief...this is supposed to be entertainment! One will find a lack of reality in any scripted show; that's why such shows are called dramatic fiction instead of documentaries.

So given the show premise and the knowledge that the creators fashioned the main character with Batman in mind, isn't it more fun to be entertained rather than look for reality flaws?

Best show on TV right now

This is how TV should be. They thought of everything. I mean, whats not to like. First of all, the surprise that this happened so early on in the season. As some people said, this is a game changer The acting is as close as perfect as it gets (for me). Then the choice of music, even if you almost never listen to this music (like i do) whats not too like and it fits. And then the writing, I mean they don't make it a shoot-out, and I think that a highly trained CIA-hitman wouldn't do that either, cause there is almost no chance you will win this. I mean, from the moment the car drives in, he handled the situation in a certain way. And I (would like to) think thats what someone with Reese's background would do. He knows that Mark (the guy from the car) would come without back-up, so running is not an option. He also knows they want him alive (at least for the time being). And then, as soon as he got shot the first time he doesn't search for the sniper or aims the gun on Mark. He just shoots out the lights so he has a chance to disappear. Althought this chance is very small, he would try it. And now we know he isn't untouchable, but still can handle himself in very bad situations. So all together this is probably the best new show on television in my opinion

Best Ever

Definately the best episode yet. Tension was sky-rocketting until John got shot, and still held you there. It ended, for me, sitting there with a siries of mixed emotions for Carter.... Not too happy with her right now.

Normally I wouldn't want to see such a major happning in the first season so early on, but this one was perfect.

I can't wait to see what the two CIA agents will do, or what John will do to them.

Hopefully we will find out why they targeted John in the next episode....... Definately on the edge!!!

Perfection on a broadcast network IS possible

This episode maintains its intensity from start to finish. Finch isn't happy that Reese is poking around in his affairs. Reese isn't happy the machine didn't get the number to him in time to save someone. It's all hands on deck to track the other 3 that the machine spit out. Reese barely manages to stutter an answer to his POI, a beautiful hair stylist. Det. Fusco loses (actually she gave him the slip) his POI *after* she bought a gun and Finch nearly gets blown to smithereens when his POI gets blown up by a loaded baby stoller. We haven't had the second commercial break yet and I'm on the edge of my seat wringing my hands.

After the second POI is killed, Reese's feathers are clearly ruffled and Finch is in a tizzy. Reese manages to calm Finch down and get him to focus on finding a connection which he does. Reese finds Persons 3 & 4 and saves them by taking on a bad guy in hand to hand combat and ducking gunfire while they run. He saves them again later while engaging in hand to hand combat and shooting the bad guys.

Now comes the perfectly scored and painfully well-acted finale. The song, "When things explode" by UNKLE feat. Ian Astbury, was absolutely the perfect choice. The look on Reese's face when he realizes that Carter has betrayed him is so subtle yet brilliant. Carter then realizes she's been played, but she's still not sure just how much she's been deceived by the CIA. Even after they shoot Reese *twice*, she's still not sure. Finch overheard Carter's call to the CIA and is racing to get to Reese in time. Over the phone, Reese thanks Finch for giving him a second chance and Finch tells him not to give up because he's almost there. Reese tells him to stay away because it's too risky. Thank God Finch doesn't take orders. As Finch gets to Reese to help him into the car, Carter bursts through the stairwell door and yelling, "Freeze." You can see the wheels turning in her head as she recognizes Finch from an earlier meeting. She decides to let them go and helps Reese into the car, but she pauses just long enough to get a slight nod from Reese before sending them on their way and leaving me to pick my jaw up off the floor and grab Kleenexes.

This episode had it all. A sense of urgency times 4. Deadpan humor. A fantastic score. Belly-laugh humor. Fieldwork for the usually desk-bound hero. A near-haircut for our graying action hero (but the stylist disappeared after the shampooing). Car accident. Car bombing. Flirting. Hand to hand combat. Plenty of shooting. Betrayal. An unlikely rescuer. Brilliant performances by all the show regulars. What Caviezel and Emerson say with their eyes and facial expressions is incredible. Then they deliver those skillfully scribed lines and you know you are experiencing a perfect storm of entertainment.

Magnificent

What a gripping and in someways game changing episode. Fantastic edge of your seat case while also helping to flesh out the universe. This show has gripped me from the start and when a few episodes ago they started to thread things together to form a larger story arc it is beginning to come together. The ending was gripping with great music, interesting twists, and a tantalizing question asked by Carter.

Great

Great, Great action and suspense I was the edge of my seat the whole time. Now that we knoe that Reese use to be CIA, it's very vague why he left I'm sure we will know more in the future. CIA operatives told Carter this, with this new information Carter now knew who Reese really is and decided to set him up in order to bring him in. What happens I can't say don't want to spoil it all. But great performance and acting on these people. Great show don't miss out.

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